CHAPTER 8: The Break-in

Chloe felt sick. Someone had been rummaging through her mother´s belongings and her own stuff.

¨Don´t step inside, Chloe, ¨said Lex softly.

¨I need to see what they´ve taken away, ¨ she said determinedly.

¨Let me go in first. For all we know they might still be in there, ¨he said, moving her aside.

Lex entered the living room followed by Chloe closely behind. All the cushions were in tatters, the chairs were overturned, and there were deep gushes in the upholstery of the sofa and the armchairs, as if someone had viciously stabbed them with a knife. The photo frames and the knick-knacks which used to be on the mantelpiece lay smashed and scattered on the floor.

However, what curdled Lex´s blood was Chloe´s bedroom. Her clothes hanged in threads in the wardrobe and her underwear poked out of the drawers the vandals had searched. Meanwhile, her bed was in complete disarray- the sheets were entangled and the mattress had been ripped open with a sharp instrument in such a way that the stuffing covered its whole surface.

¨You should have stayed outside, ¨he said warmly when he heard a stifled sob. ¨You shouldn´t see this, ¨he added, trying to block her view.

¨I´m not a fragile flower, Lex. ¨

¨We need to call the police, ¨he answered, flipping his mobile open

Lex thought it hadn´t been a regular break-in. Whoever had done such damage had done so in a fit of rage. He tried not to think what might have happened had Chloe been there. Her research had undoubtedly pissed somebody off and he wasn´t sure they would keep away.

Two police officers arrived at the scene of the crime five minutes later. There was no sign of Sheriff Ethan and Lex relaxed inwardly. He wasn´t really up to a confrontation with him on top of everything else. They dusted the rooms for fingerprints and took theirs to rule them out as suspects.

¨How long were you gone, Miss Sullivan? ¨asked the senior officer.

¨I left at around half past two, ¨she answered, letting her eyes roam the living room.

¨Three or four hours is a long time. Enough for them to have a field day. What about you, Mr Luthor, where were you? ¨

¨He was with me, officer, ¨answered Chloe, frowning before Lex could open his mouth. ¨We´ve been together these three and a half hours. ¨

¨I´m sorry, madam. It´s part of the procedure. You know we must eliminate suspects. ¨

¨I understand, officer, ¨voiced Lex with a smirk.

¨Is there anything missing? ¨

¨I wouldn´t know. Everything´s in such a state of disarray. Until I start cleaning up I won´t know what they´ve taken away. ¨

¨Right. Have you seen anybody strange walking near the house? Any unknown vehicle? A door-to-door salesman maybe? ¨

¨No. I´m new in town, officer. Everybody´s pretty much a stranger to me. ¨

¨Have you done or said anything recently that might have annoyed somebody? ¨

¨As I said, officer, ¨answered Chloe, shooting a glance at Lex, ¨I´m new in town. ¨

¨Well... our work´s done here, Miss Sullivan. We´ll check the fingerprints to see if we get lucky. In the meantime, I´d advise you to change your locks. ¨

¨Thanks, officer, ¨said Lex, ¨we appreciate your coming so promptly. ¨

¨It´s our duty, sir. Good evening, madam, ¨responded the policeman, walking towards the front door and shutting it behind him.

Lex came back into the living room and started to pick up the scattered cushions and straighten up the chairs. Then, he stole a glance at Chloe and saw her standing next to the fireplace with her back to him, her arms crossed on her chest, trembling. Lex dropped the cushion he had in his hands on the sofa, walked to her and softly, so as not startle her, turned her around.

Chloe was crying silent tears and Lex couldn´t resist the urge to wrap her in his arms to comfort her. He clasped her in a close embrace. Chloe put her head on his shoulder and her arms around his waist, letting her tears fall unchecked while he drew her tightly to him. He could feel the dampness on his dress shirt and her hurt was his.

Although they had met each other recently, a strong bond had been forged between them and, despite his initial resentment towards her, he was starting to care deeply for her. When she had no more tears left to shed, she stirred in his arms and looked up to meet his eyes.

¨I don´t want anything to happen to you, Chloe, ¨he murmured, tucking a wisp of hair behind her ear. ¨This has to stop here and now. ¨

¨Don´t you see we´re closer to the truth now than we´ve ever been before, Lex? Someone ´s afraid of what we might find out. ¨

¨Look at the state your house is in, Chloe. Next time, whoever´s done this won´t stop. Next time, you might get hurt or worse, ¨he responded gravely.

¨They weren´t after me, Lex. I´m pretty sure they were looking for the diary. Why, if not, would they have rummaged through all the rooms? ¨

¨It could be just a warning, Chloe. ¨

¨I´m not a chicken, Lex. I won´t leave until I get my answers. ¨

Lex wanted to shake her, to knock some sense into her but he was aware it had been a lost battle from the very first minute. They were too much alike, and he knew to what extremes he himself was capable of going to unravel a mystery. He couldn´t help but remember that hunger had cost him the friendship of the only young man who had accepted him without prejudice.

¨It seems you´ll finally get what you wanted, Chloe. You leave me no choice but to help you. At least, I´ll make sure nothing happens to you while I´m around. ¨

It was pitch black when the locksmith and the glazier finished their work at Chloe´s. Lex had stayed around to lend her a hand to clean up the mess.

¨It´s getting late. Would you like me to order some take-away- my treat? ¨asked Chloe.

¨You can order, but I´ll pay, ¨stated Lex once he paid the repairers.

¨You´ve done enough, Lex. I can pay my damn food! ¨she spat.

¨It wasn´t my intention to offend you, Chloe, ¨he said apologetically.

¨I´m sorry, I shouldn´t have taken it out on you. It´s just that... ¨

¨You don´t need to apologise. I understand. ¨

¨Chinese or Italian? ¨

¨Italian- if that´s OK with you. ¨

¨Italian it is. Let me go for the phone number. I´ve left a flyer in the pantry, ¨she responded, marching into the kitchen.

Although the table and the work top were spotless, and what could be salvaged had been put away, the kitchen still felt dirty and Chloe got suddenly queasy.

Trying to control the tremor that coursed through her, she grabbed the knob and opened the pantry door. In spite of the light bulb that illuminated the small room, Chloe felt the darkness engulf her and a sudden panic attack seized her.

Voices. Raised an angry voices rang in her ears. Chloe closed her eyes and tried to chase the nightmare away. She could see herself running along the dark corridor, getting closer to those voices which grew louder and louder.

Frozen on the spot Chloe couldn´t move or scream; she stood in the middle of the pantry reliving the terrible images. A sudden flash of light blinded her and paralysed her with terror.

Someone appeared in the shadows. Someone big and imposing was coming her way. Chloe took one, two, three steps back... and then, there was nothing but blackness all around her.

Lex heard a blood-curdling scream coming from the kitchen and the sound of glass shattering and metal landing on the floor. Chloe had fallen back onto the shelves while she was struggling with an imaginary assailant. She felt somebody grabbing her and couldn´t breathe. She was choking.

¨Chloe! ¨shouted Lex alarmed, feeling her starting to relax in his arms when she heard his voice. ¨What´s happened? ¨

Chloe stopped squirming and felt her heartbeat slow down as she looked into his stormy blue-grey eyes.

¨Where was I when they found me? ¨ she mumbled.

¨Are you talking about that night? ¨

¨Yes. ¨

¨A cupboard, I think. ¨

¨I believe it was in this pantry, ¨she stated shivering. ¨I´ve seen it in my dream. ¨

All of those years she had never confided her recurrent nightmares to anyone. She couldn´t bring herself to trust anyone enough to confess her fears- not even to her dad, whom she had loved with all her heart.

¨I´ve been having nightmares ever since my mum was killed. The same nightmare every night. Only that it isn´t a dream but a repressed memory. It´s too hazy to realise if the killer´s a man or a woman, but I think I know who killed my mum, Lex. ¨